New Delhi : (IANS) A total of Rs.4.18 lakh crore of taxes are pending from corporate defaulters as on January this year, parliament was told on Tuesday.

“The total amount of corporate tax demand pending for collection at the end of January 2016 is Rs.4,18,399 crore,” Minister of State for Finance Jayant Sinha told the Rajya Sabha in a written reply.

The top 50 defaulting companies account for Rs.22,903 crore of the total amount due for recovery, he added.

The minister said focused action by field formations especially on high-demand cases is one of the strategies for effecting recoveries.

“Guidelines for tax recovery officers on recovery and dealing with stay petitions have been issued. Efforts for early disposal of appeals are also undertaken, especially in high-demand cases,” Sinha said.

Moreover, efforts of the assessing officer to recover the outstanding demand are regularly reviewed and monitored by their superiors, he added.

Databases like individual transaction statement and 360-degree profile generated by the department and those maintained by third party agencies like Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU-IND) have been made available for identification of assets for recovery, Sinha said.